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I can't speak for AT&T, but this might be a situation where they realized that real "unlimited" wouldn't actually work because demand outstripped their predicti

by randall 16y ago

I can't speak for AT&T, but this might be a situation where they realized that real "unlimited" wouldn't actually work because demand outstripped their predictions. I think the real annoying part is the tethering charge, since it doesn't actually do anything extra. I can live with charges that are up front, especially when the network is one as fraile as AT&Ts. If a competitor were to step forward with a way to use unlimited (truly) data, ie 4g or the sort, more people would go to them, and AT&T would look foolish. I think it's just the current state of wireless, and an indictment of its broken-ness. Massive infrastructure startup, anyone? :)

runevault 16y ago
Sure it may be possible they were blind to the kind of usage that would be incoming, but having already gone through the massive data use that iPhone users put their network through that seems somewhat silly.
ensignavenger 16y ago
Clearwire seems to be trying. But massive infrastructure costs a lot of money, and Sprint, one of their primary sources of money, doesn't have it. Their other partners are dipping their toes in. We shall see what happens.